President Yoon Suk Yeol (third from left) on May 26 talks at the Office of the President in Seoul with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (second from right), who was visiting Seoul to attend the ninth trilateral dialogue among Korea, Japan and China. (Yang Seung Hak from Office of the President)

By Xu Aiying

President Yoon Suk Yeol on May 26 hosted bilateral summits in Seoul with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of the ninth trilateral summit among the three nations.

First, President Yoon's talks with Premier Li were on bilateral relations, regional and global affairs, and mutual interests.

The two leaders agreed that maintaining close communication in any internal and external environment is crucial for the seamless development of bilateral relations. To this end, they pledged to establish or resume communication channels in diplomacy and national security such as dialogues for diplomacy and national security, 1.5 track and strategic talks between vice foreign ministers.

Turning to economy and commerce, the two leaders said bilateral cooperation is an important driver of the economy and public livelihood of each side. To revive bilateral trade and investment, they agreed to resume a joint investment cooperation committee that was suspended in 2011, hold early next month a meeting of chief delegates for a free trade agreement and revive the impetus for follow-up negotiations on the deal.

"Korea and China need to go beyond bilateral ties and closely cooperate for the peace and prosperity of the international community," President Yoon said. "I hope for further reinforcement of cooperation between our two countries amid the global comprehensive crisis of today."

Premier Li responded by saying, "China's stance of valuing Korean-Chinese relations and continuously developing them remains unchanged," adding, "We hope to cooperate with Korea to advance bilateral ties."

President Yoon Suk Yeol (right) on May 26 shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at their bilateral summit held at the Office of the President in Seoul. (Shin Yugyeong from Office of the President)

Afterwards, President Yoon hosted a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Both leaders noted how bilateral economic cooperation was growing more active due to improved diplomatic relations, pledging to continue working together to yield palpable results in sectors like energy, economic security, small and medium businesses and startups, information and communications technology, and cutting-edge technology.

They also welcomed the decision to hold dialogue by the relevant ministries of each country on resources such as hydrogen and ammonia and agreed to boost cooperation in supply chains.

On North Korea, Seoul and Tokyo said they will continue strengthening bilateral cooperation and trilateral collaboration among Korea, the U.S. and Japan. They also pledged to closely communicate on regional and global issues and boost collaboration on the global stage such as the United Nations Security Council.

To elevate bilateral relations to the next level to mark the 60th anniversary of their official ties next year, the two leaders agreed to prepare projects through communication between diplomatic authorities.

On May 27, President Yoon held a trilateral summit with Premier Li and Prime Minister Kishida and announced a joint declaration afterwards.

xuaiy@korea.kr